In 1885 Thomas Edison was fishing out on Florida's Caloosahatchee River when he noticed several varieties of bamboo growing along the shore. Of even greater importance was a "for sale" sign posted nearby. Edison was working on electric light bulbs, and he thought bamboo might serve as filaments in the bulbs. He'd also been considering buying a winter home to take him away from the frigid New Jersey winters. Quickly tracking down the property's owner, he bought the land for a carelessly exorbitant sum. A year later Seminole Lodge was built in the newly incorporated town of Fort Myers.
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